Balloon catheters with light sources are known in the prior art. For example, see Lundahl U.S. Pat. No. 5,125,925; Sinofsky et al. U.S. Pat. No. 5,100,429; Spears U.S. Pat. No. 4,773,899; and European Patent Application EPO 646 360.
We have discovered a novel balloon catheter which is simple in construction and efficient to manufacture, and which enables information to be obtained with respect to the quantity of light emitted, so that the light can be controlled by an operator. Utilizing the balloon catheter of the present invention in which a light-emitting source is present, it is possible, for instance, to fit a stent into the vascular system of a patient, which stent is made of a plastic material that cures under the action of light. In particular, such a stent could cure under the action of a controlled amount of UV light inside the body of a patient following expansion. The balloon member can be utilized to effect the expansion of the stent and as a result of the controlled amount of light emitted within the balloon, the material of which the stent has been made cures, so that it retains its expanded form.
Therefore, it is an object of the present invention to provide a balloon catheter having a light source within the balloon, for use in the vascular system of a patient.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a balloon catheter in which the intensity and quantity of the light emitted can be controlled.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a balloon catheter having an internal light source which is simple in construction and efficient to manufacture.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.